“Nope. Pretty weird that it’s a cop.”
“They’re saying he was well respected.”
I rolled my eyes. “They always say that when a cop gets busted.”
Michelle snorted. “No, they don’t.”
“Yes, they do. Anyway, he was supposedly dating Chloe-”
Michelle nodded. “I heard they met when he showed up to handle her burglary.”
I finished off a chicken finger and wiped my mouth. “Kind of creepy, him dating a crime victim, don’t you think?”
Michelle stared at me. “I’d think that would happen all the time. Cops, firemen, they come in and save you and-”
“It doesn’t happen all the time.”
“Whatever. And, so what? It’s not like he was married. Where else is he supposed to meet women?”
I reached for another chicken finger. “At a bar. Where he can get drunk and use bad judgment like the rest of us.”
Michy deadpanned me and moved on. “They’re saying he stabbed Chloe in the chest, and Paige in the back. Some neighbors heard him fighting with Chloe that night, so the police figure he stabbed Chloe in the heat of the argument, then had to get rid of Paige.”
“You wouldn’t think a cop would be that sloppy-”
“It was a fight, not a planned hit.”
I shrugged. “I guess. Their building have a surveillance camera?”
Michelle popped a fry in her mouth. “I doubt it. From what I saw on the news, it’s just a dumpy little place. Exterior hallways, an open carport.”
In short, a lot like mine.
Michelle glanced around the restaurant, then leaned forward, both hands on the table in front of her. “You’ve got to go for it. This is the case we’ve been waiting for, Sam. It’ll get us a ton of publicity, put us in the big leagues. And it’ll bring in some decent money-”
“Cops don’t have money, and his buddies on the force aren’t going to take up a collection for a guy who murdered his girlfriend.”
“I bet he’ll have enough money to hire you. And when he taps out, the court’s gonna have to appoint you. Come on, Sam. It’s a no-brainer. Win-win.”
I’d thought of all that. But there was just one fly in the ointment. “No way he’d hire me. Everyone knows how much I hate cops-”
“That’s exactly why he should want you. Gives him more credibility.”
I wasn’t so sure he’d see it that way, and to be honest, I still wasn’t sure I wanted the case. I shook my head. “He’ll never go for it-”
“He might. You’ve got a solid rep around the courthouse. He’s bound to have heard of you.”
“Exactly my point. Why pick a cop hater-”
Michelle grabbed my forearm. “Sam, you haven’t paid me in two months, they’re about to turn off the electricity, and we’re behind on the rent.”
